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(NoModelA '3 Sheets-Sheet 1. '0. N. BURNETT. HOSE COUPLING FOR RAILWAYCARS.

'No. 402,718. Patented May 7, 1889.

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(N9 Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

0. N. BURNETT. HOSE COUPLING FOR RAILWAY CARS. No. 402,718. Patented May7, 1889.

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WITNESSES 1 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. G. N. BURNETT.

HOSE COUPLING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

Patented May '7, 1889.

INVENTOR.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES N. BURNETT, OF CLAY CENTRE, KANSAS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TOHARRY G. HIGINBOTHAM, OF SAME PLACE.

HOSE-COUPLING FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 402,718, dated May 7,1889. Application filed September 5,1888- Serial No. 284,594. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES N. BURNETT, of Clay Centre, in the county ofClay and State of Kansas, have invented a new and 5 useful Improvementin Hose-Couplings for Railway-Oars, of which the following is afull,clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to an improvement in hose-couplings forrailway-cars, and has for its object to provide a simple and reliablemeans of automatically uniting the opposing sections of steam or airpipes located beneath the cars of a train when said cars are themselvescoupled.

The invention consists in the construction and combination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed outin the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying 2o drawings, forming a partof this specification, in which similar figures of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the coupling, partially in section, inan uncoupled position. Fig. 2 is a similar view illustrating the partsin the position occupied when coupled. Fig. 3 is a side elevationillustrating the position of the parts when the sections become uncoupled by accident. Fig. at is a section on the line as 00 of Fig. 3.Fig. 5 is a detail view of the safety-catch and releasing-lever; andFig. 6 illustrates the angle at which the front and rear coupling-headsare placed. 7 is a perspective view of the coupling, showing thecoupling-heads connected.

In carrying out the invention a jacket, 10, is held longitudinallybeneath the car and draw-head 11, being supported near the ends of saidcar by a block, 12, and intermediate of the ends by other blocks, 13.The blocks are secured to the frame-work of the cars, the intermediateblocks being rigidly attached and provided with a smooth aperture,through which the jacket passe s. The end blocks, 12, are secured to ayoke-like spring, 14, and the said spring is firmly attached at its endsto the car-frame, as best shown in Fig. 4.

The spring 14 consists of two V-sections, 15, united at their uppercontiguous ends by a horizontal member, to which member the slots 39,formed in the jacket.

block is fastened. The spring is made from a single piece of suitablemetal, and is intended to offset any lateral motion of the car or othermotion calculated to throw the jacket from its normal position. Thespring and the blocks or boxes carrying the jacket are so secured to thecar-frame that the jacket will be supported directly overthe center ofthe track and a proper distance above the same.

At one side of the box 13 a collar, 16, is formed upon the jacket orattached thereto, adapted to engage with one end of a spring, 17, coiledaround the jacket, the other end being made to rest against the block orbox. The purpose of this spring is to oifset all back or forward motionof the cars while running and when said cars are coupled.

The end of the jacket 10 is screwed into the block or box 12, and a rod,18, is projected through the jacket and beyond the extremity thereof.The outer extremity of the rod 18 is screwed into a coupling-pipe, 19,having an inclined projection or flange, 20, formed upon the endapproaching the jacket. The rod 18 is adapted to reciprocate in thejacket, and its movement is limited by lugs 38, integral with the rod,projecting outward through Aspring, 21, is coiled around the rod 18,between the conical flange 20 and the block 12, bearing upon said blockand flange, which spring is adapted to assist in the operation of thecoupler when occasion may require. I

The coupling-pipe 19 is provided with a valve, 22, and a semicircularflange, 23, partially surrounds the stem thereof, purposed to limit thethrow of a lever, 24, secured to said stem. WVhen the lever is throwndownward, the valve is closed, as shown in Fig. 1. When reversed, thevalve is opened, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

Upon the outer end of the pipe 19 a coupling-head, 25, is screwed orotherwise attached. In affixing the heads they are inclined at an angleof about forty-five degrees, the head of one pipe-section being inclinedin an opposite direction to the other, as illustrated in Fig. 6.Referring to Fig. 6, A, for instance, represents a front elevation ofthe uncoupled head of the last car of a train, and B a rear elevation ofthe opposite or coupled head.

It will be observed that by reason of the opposing heads being reverselyinclined they are always in position for coupling at either end.

The heads consist of a hub, 20, recessed to receive a washer, 27, and anoutwardly-extending tubular rubber cushion, 28. From the hub 26 aligningarms 29 are projected outward, flaring in opposite directions, and insaid arms a longitudinal slot, 30,'is produced, the inner end wall ofwhich slot is carried at an inclination to the rear endof the hub, asbest shown in Fig. 3.

WVithin the slots 30 gripping-fingers 31 are pivoted, and the outer endsof said fingers are pivotally connected to rods 32, leading rearward andhaving their inner end pivoted in any suitable manner in the block 12,as bestshown in Fig. 4. A pivotal connection is also established betweenthe uppermost rack.

rod, 32, and the valve-lever 24 through the medium of a link,

To the end boxes, 12, or from the support of the boxes, a springlatch-bar, 34:, is attached, which bar, extending outward, terminates ina head, 35, adapted to engage the outer face of the conical flange 20,should the pipe-heads be accidentally uncoupled, and prevent the valvesfrom closing in the pipe 19, as shown in Fig. 3. hen the hose iscoupled, the head of the spring-latch is in advance of the flange 20,and when the hose is entirely uncoupled the said head oecupiesa positionimmediately at one side of the flange, asillustrated in Fig. 1.

The latch-bar is connected by a chain, 36, with a lever, 37, Figs. 1, 2,and 3, pivoted above the coupleiyand representing the ordinaryplatform-lever used upon passengertrains, whereby the latch may be movedhorizontally to admit of uncoupling.

Communication is established between the coupling-pipe 19 and the mainsteam orair pipe 40, extending beneath the car, by a flexible horizontalpipe, 41,'intersecting the couplii'ig-pipe to the rear of the valve 22.The lever 37 may or may not be provided with a W hen, however, thecoupling is used in connection with freight-ears, a rack similar to thatillustrated at 42 in Fig. 5 is employed.

In operation, when the coupler is in'position to couple with an opposingpipe-section, the gripping-fingers are connected with the head, as shownin Fig. 1. As the opposing coupling-heads strike or come in contact,they press back the rod 18, causing the grippingfingers 31 to assume anangle of about fortyfive degrees, corresponding with position of head,whereupon as the'coupling-heads come in contact (see Fig. 7) the arms ofone head passbetween those of the opposite head and engage the rear faceof the respective hubs 26. .At the same time the valve 22 is opened bythe link 33. a

In uncoupling passenger-ears using automatic car-couplers all that isnecessary is to manipulate the lever 37, (shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3,)and by so doing both the draw-head and latch-bar are moved horizontallyand at the same time. The chain 36 is always attached and ready for use,whereupon by operating the lever it will carry the draw head and springback at the same time; but if the hose-coupler is used uponfreight-trains, when the trains are leaving cars at station andswitching and making up trains, the operation of uncoupling consistssimply in carrying the lever 37 horizontally upon the notched bar 42,whereupon the latch-bar 34 is moved horizontally and the rod 18 allowedto slide outward. In the event that the hose should be uncoupled byaccident the valves will not entirely close, owing to the latch-head 35,which will engage with the pipe-flange 20, as shown in Fig.

The heads leave each other freely. Although the cars may have beenuncoupled by accldent, at the same time the valves are held partiallyopen. Theheads do not hang to each other, but are held back by the latch34. Thus the heads cannot extend forward far enough to close the valves.\Vhile the heads are in theposition illustrated in Fi 3 they can beagain coupled as though no accidenthad occurred.

The lever 37 (illustrated in Fig. 5) is ahorizontal lever, and is onlyused in the absence of an automatic car-coupling lever, and is intendedto operate horizontally.

Having thus fully describedmy invention,I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent 1. The combination, with a spring-actuated rod,bearings for the same located beneath the car, a coupling-pipe securedto said rod, and a valve contained in said pipe, of a head secured tothe coupling-pipe, gripping-fingers pivoted in said head,connecting-rods pivoted beneath the ear and to said fingers, andalinkconnection between one of said rods and the valve-stem,substantially as shown and described.

2. The combination, with a spring-actuated rod located beneath the car,a coupling-pipe secured to said rod, a valve contained in the pipe, anda head attached to the same having outwardly and oppositelyflaringslotted arms, of gripping-fingers pivoted in the slots of said arms,connecting-rods-secured to the car-frame and pivoted to said fingers, alink connecting one connecting-rod and the valve, and a cushion insertedin the head at the extremity of the coupling-pipe, substantially asshown and described.

3. The conibinatiomwith a spring-actuated rod located beneath the car, acoupling-pipe secured to the said rod, a coupling-head attached to saidpipe at an angle approaching forty-five degrees provided with outwardlyand oppositely flaring slotted arms, of gripping-fingers pivoted in saidarms, a valve lo- ICO cated in the coupling-pipe to the rear of thehead, connecting-rods secured to the block and pivoted to said fingers,and a link-connection between one connecting-rod and the valve,substantially as shown and described.

4. The combination, with a spring-actuated rod located beneath the car,a coupling-pipe secured to said rod provided with an essentially-conicalhead at the point of juncture, a coupling-head attached to the outer endof the pipe at an angle approximately of forty-five degrees havingoutwardly-flaring and slotted arms, of gripping-fingers pivotedin saidarms, a valve located in the coupling-pipe to the rear of the head,connecting-rods secured beneath 5. The combination, with the rod 18 andcoupling-head 25, of the sleeve 10, bearingblock 13, spring 14, andbearing-block 12, carried by said spring, substantially as shownanddescribed.

CHARLES N. BURNETT.

Witnesses:

O. M. STAPLES, EUGENE WOLFE.

